SSN is a digest of the day's soccer/football/futbol articles with a focus on the top European leagues and the United States National Team. Below, you’ll find links to articles and video, as well as additional features and commentary. We locate the top news of the day so you can stay updated with ease.

Friday, September 18, 2009

After a weekend of 14 goals, Ligue 1 looks like itself again: a series of physical games littered with poor finishing.

Bordeaux made quite a statement at Juve in a Champions League group that will be incredibly tight. They will rotate the team tomorrow which is no big deal considering the depth of the Girondins bench (Gouffran, Bellion). Boulogne keeps on surprising by gaining points without scoring. Marouane Chamakh (MOR), the king of ADD, expressed his desire to replace Trezeguet at Juventus on Tuesday while Wenger hinted at a January offer for the player…

Boulogne – Bordeaux1 - 2

Rennes plays well and wins small.Grenoble is out of its depth in Ligue 1 this year.

Grenoble – Rennes 0 – 2

Lorient could have beaten Lyon last weekend but decided to stick to their “win one, lose one” schedule.Nancy scores goals but Lorient doesn’t lose at home.

Lorient – Nancy 2 - 1

There was no Gudjohnsen (ICE) effect but Monaco still won its PSG home game by 2 goals in the last 5 minutes.Meanwhile Nice conceded 9 goals in their last three games. The Riviera derby will be entertaining.

Nice – Monaco 2 - 3

Auxerre finally won a game with the return of Jelen (POL). St Etienne is struggling as usual. Expect a game of teams that do not want to lose; and they won’t .

St Etienne – Auxerre0 – 0

Is it so wrong to have no thoughts about a game between bland teams currently in the 12th and 15th position in the league?Non.

Sochaux– Valenciennes1 - 0

Pippo crucified OM on Tuesday and that’s a shame because les Phoceens gave everything they had but showed their relative lack of experience in the competition.Lucho Gonzalez(ARG) will need a few more games and Brandao better service.Montpellier got lucky vs. Lens but they still refuse to lose and are now 3rd place in the league.OM has not won at home yet…hardly the mark of a Champion…

Marseille – Montpellier 2 - 0

This is the North derby between the flashy metropolis and blue collar Lens.Think Packers vs. Bears.Lens and their fans will not miss an opportunity to claim the Northern Crown this weekend.

Lens – Lille 2 - 1

TFC did really well in the Europa league with a courageous victory in Belgrade which didn’t quite silence the rumors of Gignac (FRA) being a fraud…they will pay for their mid-week efforts against a motivated yet inefficient Le Mans.

Toulouse – Le Mans1 - 1

As if Mevut Erding’s surgery was not enough, PSG will be missing a suspended and temperamental Sessegnon in what promises to be the highlight of the weekend.Lyon got pretty beaten up by the Viola thugs on Wednesday but they won with a Pjanic (BOS) goal. Bodmer and Bastos are on the injury list.

The history of the Manchester derby can be traced back as far as 1881 when, in a friendly on Nov 12, West Gorton (St. Marks) – the forerunners of City – played at home to Newton Heath, later United. The "Heathens" won 3-0 and the affair was described, in the local press, as "a pleasant game".

As the U.S. men's national team rose to prominence within CONCACAF, its World Cup qualifying journeys took on a familiar pattern. The Americans would win at home, lose at Mexico and Costa Rica, then scrounge up a smattering of wins and draws elsewhere during their travels. That combination was enough to clinch a trip to the World Cup finals with a game or two (or three) to spare. Final-day white-knuckle qualifiers were for the region's lesser lights.

"You ask 100 people, 99 will say it's very bad and the 100th will be Mark Hughes."Arsene Wenger crosses Hughes off his Christmas card list after the Manchester City manager defended Emmanuel Adebayor's alleged stamp on Robin van Persie.

"If somebody stamps on your head in that way, you wouldn't say, 'thank you very much' and turn the other cheek. Only Jesus Christ did that."Wenger backs Van Persie for speaking out about the unholy incident.

"It's like Alan Partridge living out of a suitcase."Goalkeeper Scott Flinders on latest club Hartlepool - the fifth side he has been loaned to by Crystal Palace.

"Certainly we saw the best of it in those highlights."Steve Claridge on the Sheffield Wednesday-Nottingham Forest game, Football League Show.

"Without being too harsh, Croatia were appalling."Teddy Sheringham at half-time during the England-Croatia game.

"There's only one Michael Jackson, one Michael Jackson. There used to be two, but now there's just you, walking in a Jackson wonderland."In honour of the Marine FC midfielder.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Dunga has steered Brazil through to World Cup qualification with matches in hand, and has picked up the Copa America and the Confederations Cup along the way. Maradona, meanwhile, is sitting in the hot seat with his Argentina in danger of missing out on the World Cup for the first time since 1970.

A statement from the FA said: "The Football Association today issued two charges against Manchester City's Emmanuel Adebayor following Saturday's Premier League fixture between Manchester City and Arsenal. Under the fast-track disciplinary process, Adebayor has been charged with violent conduct following an incident with Robin van Persie, which resulted in the Arsenal player receiving facial injuries."Referee Mark Clattenburg has advised the FA that he did not see this incident, but has confirmed that had he done so, he would have sent Adebayor off for violent conduct.

I'm writing this from Oviedo, in the region of Asturias in the north of Spain. It took me seven hours to get here by bus on Sunday, and when I arrived my host unfortunately (but very kindly) took me on a tour of the city which was actually en fiestas - specifically the Fiestas de San Mateo in which people were making the habitual amount of noise, and eating and drinking as if the word "recession" were some kind of myth associated only with the rest of Europe.

"Following examination of all the evidence, notably the declarations of both the referee and the referees' assessor, as well as the various video footage, it was not established to the panel's satisfaction that the referee had been deceived in taking his decision on the penalty.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Adebayor will almost certainly be banned for three matches for the stamp on Robin van Persie that left the Arsenal striker with a gashed cheekbone and accusing his former team-mate of a "mindless and malicious" assault. City's £25m summer signing will also face sanctions for celebrating his goal by running the length of the pitch to antagonise the away supporters. The stamping offence is expected to be fast-tracked through the disciplinary system, meaning his ban will start with Sunday's derby against Manchester United.

Perhaps the most remarkable thing about the big man's celebration was his willingness to sprint the length of the field. No Arsenal supporter had ever seen him track back to his own half and yet, here he was, giving it the Hulk Hogans to a cacophony of boos and flying burgers. It would appear shock caused the collective dropping of instruments to hand, as one unfortunate City steward was knocked unconscious.